Women's Day Encloses Significant Importance This Year in Lebanon

As the world is marking the International Women's Day, this celebration has enclosed a significant importance this year in Lebanon where more than 100 women have submitted their candidacy for the parliamentary elections.

The Kataeb party also has its share of this record-breaking number, with many female candidates bracing themselves to take part in the parliamentary race.

Kataeb's candidate for the Catholic seat in the Tyre-Zahrani district, Mira Wakim, said that the fact that 111 female contenders have submitted their candidacy for the elections shows that Lebanese women have decided to assume national responsibility, adding that the Kataeb party has included women in its candidates list out of conviction that they make up half of the society.

“A woman’s perspective can be different from that of a man so it would complete his; thus, her role would be important and essential in politics,” Wakim told the Kataeb website.

"Rise up to your ambitions, keep going till the end and don’t let anything stand in your way," she said in an address to the Lebanese women. "The International Women’s Day could be only for one day, but in fact women are active and efficient for 365 days,” she said addressing the Lebanese women.

For her part, Kataeb's Candidate for the Maronite seat in Aley, Theodora Bejjani, stressed that having 111 female candidates gives hope for change in the future, pointing out that women can be distinct from men by being multi-taskers and, therefore, can handle several missions at the same time.

“Women also have a greater sense of humanitarianism. In case they reach the Parliament, female lawmakers would surely accord more importance to social issues, including the old-age security system which I am sure that it will be implemented once a woman takes charge of it,” she said.

Bejjani called on women to be the pulse of change so as to build the society that everyone is aspiring to, urging female voters to elect their representatives responsibly and support women candidates in order to make a difference in the upcoming polls.

"Instead of having only four female lawmakers, we can now at least get 10 into the Parliament while making sure to have the right woman in the right place with her competence,” she said.